9005 Skimmer Cup for 9011 Skimmer

[freddie40]

Roger,

Have had a 9011 for quite a while (was a 9010 before I upgraded the pump) and really haven't been happy with the performance on the 75 gallon reef. Recently it is foaming a lot, but does not produce skimmate. If I changed to a 9005 skimmer cup would I get more skimmate?

Dave

 

[rvitko]

I would hesitate to recommend it, the likely result is light or watery skimmate and difficulty adjusting it, there is a likely cause that should be solved as the 9010 and 9011 have generally been a reliable performer in my experience. Is it used in sump or in tank.

 

[freddie40]

I am using in the sump with a constant water level. Have tried every different method but with no luck.

 

[rvitko]

Water is exiting the stand pipe? Have we checked that the venturi nozzle/ impeller housing are not damaged or broken and checked the silencer for leaks? Are there any odd noises?

 

[Herbie]

I have used a 9005/9006 cup on the 9010/9011 before. Just my opinion, but I love the bigger pump (9010/9011) used with the smaller cup (9005/9006). I feel it gives excellent adjustability using the air screw. Its been my experience that any 9010, or 9011 I have had, I have to run the air screw pretty much wide open to get them to skim well. When using the 9005/9006 cup they are much more adjustable...........meaning that if you open the air screw all the way........the skimate would be very wet, but its a nice option to be able tone down the air to skim dark. In my experience a stock 9011 is just a much better skimmer with the 9006 cup.
As a matter of fact, I was just thinking of ordering a 9006 cup for my "stock" 9011.
Over the past several years I have run many Tunze skimmers - 9002,9005,9006,9010,9011,9015. By far, my favorite for performance has been th 9010/9011 using the 9006/9006 cup. I wish Tunze would offer it as an option. I just purchased a 9011 knowing I would have to also purchase the 9006 cup extra.

The only cup I have yet to try is the foam extractor cup.
Do these extractor cups offer better performance than the stock cups Roger? At over $100. just for the extractor........not sure if I will try one over a 9006 cup........maybe, just because I am curious. :lmao:

Herbie

 

[freddie40]

Herbie,

I totally agree with you. When acting properly (i.e. perfectly clean, air screw all of the way open, perfect water flow) the 9011 is great for my 75 gallon tank. This may be 15% of the time and I shouldn't have to fiddle with it to get it to work perfect 80% of the time. This is why I am thinking of the 9006 cup.

Dave

 

[rvitko]

That doesn't match my experience, I generally find the screw needs to be about 4 turns open, a bit over half way, to get a good result with the stuck cup, I think their must be something wrong, usually it is many small things, a bit of dirt in the skimmer body, a blemish on the venturi, a worn impeller, salt creep in the air intake. The Foam extractor should work well with the air all the way open

 

[Herbie]

That doesn't match my experience, I generally find the screw needs to be about 4 turns open, a bit over half way, to get a good result with the stuck cup, I think their must be something wrong, usually it is many small things, a bit of dirt in the skimmer body, a blemish on the venturi, a worn impeller, salt creep in the air intake. The Foam extractor should work well with the air all the way open

Thats pretty much what I was implying Roger. The stock cup works well enough, pretty much with the air tap almost all the way open, or very close to it. Running a small cup on the 9011, it just seems to give a lot more adjustability......not necessarily more skimate unless you want a lot of watered down skimmate. It would skim very wet if needed with the small cup on the 9011. I was able to get it to skim very dark when I dialed the air in using the small cup.
I remember a long while ago when I got frustrated with my 9010, when the bubble head would just barely reach the top of the cup lip......and just stay there. When I installed a 9005 cup, it was like a whole new skimmer.
Just my experience over the years of using the Doc skimmers.

Roger, how would you say skimmate production is when using the 9020 foam extractor vs any of the other cups? I am thinking of trying one out on my 9010 or 9011.

Herbie

 

[rvitko]

9015.140 is the tallest cup, 9020.140 is just about 1/2" shorter, the skimmate will be darker and less will be collected and the air needs to be fully open, essentially you end up with a stronger skimmer if everything is optimal because the reaction chamber is larger and you are running the maximum air capacity, but if you had trouble with the stock 9010 cup, it will only be worse.